Complicated Emotions
by mermaidbyheart
Summary: Molly Smith is now seventeen years old, raised by her aunt thanks to Booker's help. However her feelings for Dennis Booker run way deeper than they should but the Teshima's private detective has no clue. It's only a matter of time before all hell breaks loose.
1. Chapter 1

**01.**

" _What about you, Dennis? Will you always be my friend?"  
_ " _Molly, I'll always be your friend. You couldn't lose me if you tried."_

 _ **10 years later...**_

The seventeen-year-old Molly Smith barely paid attention to the boring history lesson. It was her last class for the day and she was really tired. Looking somewhere out the window her thoughts ran wild only to focus on one particular person yet again.

She ran a hand through her hair absentmindedly as she thought about what her life would've been if her father hadn't left her at _Teshima_ 's daycare center before he was murdered all those years ago. She would've probably shared her father's faith or even worse. She missed him and her mother a lot and would forever be grateful to her aunt Janet for taking care of her and raising her to the young woman she had now considered herself to be. She was the only family Molly had. Well there was one more person in her life but she didn't exactly consider him family because to her he meant more than anyone else in the world.

Dennis Booker.

Ever since her father left her at the daycare center of Dennis' office building, he never stopped taking care of her. He took her in his home, he gave her his bed while he slept in an uncomfortable chair and when he found out her father was dead he did everything to find someone from her family who would take her in and raise her with love and devotion. Even after that he never forgot about her and sure as hell never broke the promise he had given her before leaving her at her aunt's. He visited her at the farm every week, he rode horses with her, he took her out with his car and he always remembered her birthdays. Last year he had even agreed to take her out with his motorbike and it was one of the best birthdays in her life. She'd never forget the warmth of his muscular body while she held her arms tight around him under his leather jacket and his scent invading her nostrils; a mixture of his cologne, mango shampoo and cigarettes. She wasn't sure when exactly her feelings for Dennis had grown so much but lately she couldn't stop thinking about him and she missed him every second whenever he wasn't around.

Just then the bell rang and she quickly shoved her books into her backpack before throwing it over her shoulder.

"History class is so boring." She heard a voice next to her and turned to look at her friend Maggie.

"I couldn't agree more." Molly nodded and the two shared knowing smirks.

"I saw you daydreaming again during history." Maggie teased her, but Molly shook her head.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Yeah, you do. You were thinking about him again, weren't you?"

"Who?"

"That Dennis guy you're always talking about."

Molly sighed while the two walked out of the building together. She and Maggie were best friends and she was the only one who Molly could talk to about Dennis. She turned to look at the other girl.

"I just…" She began when Maggie suddenly grabbed her wrist stopping abruptly on her place.

"Who's this guy?" She asked, voice choked and Molly frowned at her.

"Who are you..?" She began to ask but stopped in mid-sentence when she turned around to look at the direction Maggie was staring at.

Her eyes widened in shock.

" _Dennis_?!" She gasped and her lips immediately pulled into a smile.

" _That_ is Dennis?" Maggie asked tightening her grip on her wrist. " _The_ Dennis?!"

She suddenly smirked at Molly's direction and casting another glance at Booker she licked her lips.

"Well now I know why you can't stop talking about him. He's so _hot_."

Molly turned to glare at her friend and elbowed her slightly before she hurried to where Dennis was standing.

"Dennis!" She exclaimed with a smile and he gave her one of his award winning smiles before she ran to hug him.

When they released she introduced him to Maggie.

"What are you doing here?" She asked after the other girl waved for goodbye and left.

"I'm here because I have a surprise for you." He grinned and opened the car door for her.

She got in quickly and he closed the door climbing on his own seat.

"Ugh, that stupid seatbelt.." Molly groaned trying to pull it so she could put it on but it didn't move.

"Here let me.."

Dennis quickly leaned in to help her and because of the close proximity of their faces she suddenly found it hard to breathe. He was too preoccupied with the seatbelt to notice the way Molly was looking at him. Due to their closeness she could feel his warm breath on her skin and her eyes immediately travelled all over his perfectly sculpted face memorizing every detail. His deep brown eyes were narrowed in concentration and his full pink lips were slightly parted. Her heart was beating so fast in her chest and she was too lost in her thoughts to notice he had finally succeeded fixing her belt.

"All done." He grinned while pulling back on his seat, putting on his own belt.

The sound of his voice took her out of her thoughts and she smiled, redness covering her cheeks.

"Thanks."

Shooting her a smile he started the car and drove off.

"So how was school?" He asked and she shrugged her shoulders.

"Boring. Especially the history lecture that was our last for the day. I was counting the minutes 'till the end of the class."

Dennis chuckled and Molly couldn't help the smile on her face.

"So...where are we going?" She asked, because her curiosity was killing her.

"You'll see." He answered, his eyes fixed firmly on the road and a small smirk dancing on his lips.

After driving a couple of minutes in silence they finally reached their destination and Molly's jaw dropped in surprise.

"You didn't tell me we were going to your house!" She exclaimed excitedly.

Dennis only smiled and the two climbed out of the car. After making sure all the doors are properly locked he motioned Molly to follow him in the house. He then asked her to close her eyes and carefully lead her further inside. When they reached his art studio he carefully helped her through the door and both of them finally stopped.

"Can I open my eyes now?" She asked impatiently, her voice full of curiosity.

He only smirked.

"In a minute."

He busied himself with arranging something in front of her and when he was done he smiled.

"You can open your eyes now."

She did as she was told only to gasp slightly. There were four amazing paintings in front of her and she stared at them in awe.

"I've been working on these few pieces and I want to give one of them to you as a present. But I want you to choose which one." He explained nodding towards the paintings.

She looked at the four paintings but they were all beautiful and it was really hard for her to choose only one. It was then that she spotted something with the corner of her eyes. On the other wall there were more paintings and all were turned around with their backs but there was one turned with the front and it looked kind of freshly painted. It was blue mixed with white and a small dots with any other color she could think of.

Before Dennis could stop her, Molly walked over to the painting and stared at it in awe.

"Can I have this one?" She asked. "It's amazing!"

Dennis thought about it for a moment. The painting she wanted to take was really personal, not to mention it was entitled after something Molly still hadn't felt and was yet to experience.

It was that realization that struck him hard.

Molly was _seventeen_.

She was growing up without her parents by her side. Her only family was her aunt that had raised her. But she had no other father figure in her life except for Dennis himself and the memories of her father who wasn't exactly what a person could call a 'role model'. Gary Smith didn't even have a place to call home (from what Molly had told him, Dennis knew they used to live in a hotel). He tried hard to provide for his daughter but in ways that weren't exactly legal.

It was then that Booker realized he needed to talk to Molly and explain some things to her. She was intelligent and an exceptionally smart girl but there were a lot of bad people, a lot of bad _men_ out there whose minds were sick and twisted and they would do horrible things to young girls like her and Dennis knew he needed to prepare her.

He was brought back to the present with a jolt when Molly's hand made contact with his arm.

"Dennis? Can I have it?"

He blinked realizing she was still waiting for his answer about the painting and nodded.

"Yeah. I guess it's alright to take that one."

She glowed and threw her arms around him to pull him in a hug.

"Thank you so much!"

For a moment Molly got lost into the warmth of his body and the scent of his cologne and she closed her eyes committing them to memory. Dennis pulled out of the embrace and they took the painting loading it to the truck of his car. When they got back inside the house Dennis took her hand and led her to the couch. He waited as she sat down and he tried to calm his nerves a bit. Recalling the little girl who knew way too much for someone her age he couldn't help but smile at the memory.

"You've grown up so much." He said, the smile never leaving his face. "Yet I still remember you as the bubbly little girl who was really smart and knew so much about cars that it was actually scary."

Molly frowned slightly. Looking at his handsome smiling face she wished more than anything that Dennis could view her as the young woman she was, not as the little girl he used to take care of.

"Anyway my point is you're not a little girl anymore and I just wanted to talk to you and explain some things. You're at the age when most young girls meet the boy of their dreams and fall in love and you probably will too. I know I'm not your father but I'm talking as your friend. As a former police officer I've dealt with all kinds of criminals but working undercover gave me a better perspective of the criminals in high schools and universities. What I'm trying to say is that there are a lot of dangerous people out there, a lot of dangerous _men_ and I want you to be careful. I know that you're in the age where you will probably meet some cute looking boy and will fall in love but I know you're also very smart. So whatever happens, whoever you meet and fall in love with, be cautious and don't let him talk you into doing something you're not ready to do."

'If you only knew...' She thought looking straight in his dark eyes. However realizing he was expecting her to say something she nodded her head slightly.

"I understand and I promise I'll be careful." _But you don't have to worry because I'm already in love with someone and that is you._

Dennis smiled at her words and lean to press a kiss on her forehead causing her stomach to flip flop inside her but she kept her face expressionless.

"And if someone does something, _anything_ that upsets you or makes your feel uncomfortable you'll tell me, right?" Booker asked and she nodded.

"Yes, of course."

"Good."

He pulled her into his arms for a quick hug and she got lost into his warm embrace.

"So..what do you want to do now?" He asked gently pulling out from the hug.

Molly didn't really want to leave so soon so she came up with an idea.

"Why don't we watch a movie? I know you have a big collection of horror movies so we can watch one of them."

Dennis hesitated.

"You have school tomorrow."

"Yes but I don't have homework. Please, Dennis." Molly begged and he sighed.

"You know I can't say no to you. But I want you to call your aunt and ask her, ok?"

"I'm seventeen."

But when Dennis gave her a stern look she sighed.

"Ok, fine, I'll call her."

Once that was settled and Molly had gotten her aunt's permission Dennis took a few movies and handed them to Molly so she could choose one. She picked one that didn't seem so scary and after they got settled on the couch, they put it on. Molly was curled in a blanket and Dennis was holding a bottle of beer, occasionally taking sips. At one point she moved closer and rested her head on his shoulder. He looked down and suppressing a smile he put his arm around her protectively.

"If you find the move too scary we can always stop it and pick another one." He suggested but she shook her head with her eyes fixed at the screen.

"No, the movie's ok."

They didn't speak again during the rest of the movie. When the end credits rolled Dennis looked down and realized Molly was asleep. He turned off the movie and gently lifted the young girl in his arms carrying her to one of the empty rooms. He placed her on the bed and covered her with the blanket. The memory of the little girl asking him for a bedtime story popped into his head and he smiled.

"I don't believe in fairytales but I'm sure one day you'll find your prince and you'll be very happy with him." He carefully placed a soft kiss on her forehead. "Sleep tight, princess."

With that Booker stood up from the bed and walked out the door. Not knowing that the prince she was dreaming of was no other than Dennis himself.

He had yet to find out that that dream was about to turn their lives into nightmares.


	2. Chapter 2

**02.**

"I saw him naked!"

Dennis had just driven Molly to the school and she couldn't wait to share with her best friend what had happened in the morning. Maggie who was just taking a sip from her drink almost choked.

" _What_?!"

"I saw Dennis naked." Molly repeated, her eyes glimmering in a rebellious way. "It was by accident and he didn't notice me, but _I saw him naked_!"

Her friend's eyes were huge but at the same time full of excitement.

"And?!" She insisted but Molly only rolled her eyes.

"And nothing. I moved away quickly so he wouldn't see me."

Maggie almost groaned.

"Start from the beginning and give me all the details."

Molly laughed at her friend's behavior but quickly told her everything.

"Last night we watched a horror movie at his house and I stayed for the night. This morning when I woke up I went to Dennis' room to see if he's awake but he wasn't there. Then I thought he was in the kitchen so I decided to take a shower before I join him for breakfast."

"And?" Maggie said, eager for her friend to get to the main part of the story.

"And I grabbed a towel but when I walked to the bathroom the door was opened. I shrugged it off because I thought he might've forgotten it or left it like that on purpose to let me know the bathroom was empty. Then I put my hand on the handle to push the door open a bit more so I could walk in and...well I saw him."

Molly trailed off, the vision of Dennis under the shower floating before her eyes.

"Well?" Maggie insisted when she realized Molly had started daydreaming.

"Well what?" Molly asked and Maggie rolled her eyes impatiently.

When the seventeen year old girl realized what her friend was actually asking her she blushed slightly.

"He had his back turned towards me and thank God for that because I walked out before he could noticed me."

"So you didn't see-" Maggie began, but Molly quickly interrupted her.

"No, of course not."

"Then why are you so excited? You didn't actually see _that much_."

"Yeah but I saw him naked. Even if it was only his back." Molly said, smiling at the memory. "He's so muscular and his back is so strong and the water drops were rolling all over his tan skin...even his tattoo looked darker than usual."

"You're so screwed." Maggie said and Molly rolled her eyes.

"Don't I know it?!"

She sighed getting lost in thought again.

"When are you going to tell him?" Her friend asked and she looked at her confused.

"Tell him what?!"

"That you've got feelings for him, dumby!"

Molly's expression grew serious.

"I can't tell him. And I won't."

"Why not?"

"Because he looks at me like I'm his daughter. And besides I'm under age."

"Maybe he looks at you like a daughter, but you're _not_ and you'll be eighteen in a few months."

Molly sighed.

"You don't understand. If he finds out I have feelings for him...he'll back off and will do everything to stay as far away from me as possible. And I'd rather die than let that happen."

"But…" Maggie began to protest, but Molly cut her off.

"No buts. Dennis can never know I'm in love with him. End of story."

The other girl nodded.

"As you wish. But what are you going to do if he finds himself a girlfriend? You told me he was single at the moment, but that won't last forever you know?!"

"I _know_. But I'll worry about that when it comes to it."

"Whatever you say." Maggie said, shrugging her shoulders nonchalantly.

"Thanks, Maggs, you're a great friend!" Molly said and pulled the other girl in a tight hug. "I don't know what I'd do without you!"

The other girl grinned.

"That's what friends are for."

They finally reached the art classroom and quickly took their seats. Their art teacher Mr Marker had retired and now they couldn't wait to see who was going to take his place.

"You know you should've told Dennis to apply for the job." Maggie leaned to whisper in Molly's ear. "From what you've said he's a great painter. Not to mention that way you would've had the chance to see him almost every day."

"How didn't I think of that?!" Molly groaned causing her friend to laugh.

"Well, it's too late now anyway." Maggie said just when their new teacher walked inside.

As it turned out their new art teacher was a woman. She was with dark hair and eyes and was wearing jeans and white shirt on stripes.

"Hello, everyone. I'm Donna Cofax and I will be your new teacher. Before we start I suggest we get to know each other a bit, so I'm going to tell you a bit of myself and then you can tell me a bit of yourself."

After she told them about herself it was the students' turn to do it. Everyone would start from their name and would end with a couple of words for their parents. However this was a painful topic for Molly (it always have been) so she quickly zoned out deep in thoughts. She loved her aunt a lot, but she missed her parents more than anything. However she was pulled out of her thoughts when Maggie suddenly elbowed her in the ribs.

"Ow! What did you do that for?!" Molly whisper-hissed and her friend nodded with her head in front of them.

Molly turned her head and redness covered her cheeks when she realized their teacher was staring at her.

"It's your turn, sweetheart. Aren't you going to introduce yourself?" Ms Cofax said gently.

"Yes, I'm sorry, I just...got lost in thought. My name's Molly Smith and I..." But she was saved from the bell that rang loudly in the hallway.

Before her teacher could say anything else Molly grabbed her stuff and hurried out of the classroom. She ran through the corridor and into the first bathroom she saw. Closing herself in one of the cubicles she closed the lavatory's lid and sat down bursting into tears. She hated how she was reminded over and over again she was an orphan every time there was a new teacher or some formal school event. Her aunt did her best to make her feel loved but she couldn't fill the void left from the loss of her parents.

She didn't know how long she had cried until she checked her watch and realized she'd been sitting there for an hour or so. She wiped her eyes and unlocked the door. Walking over to the sink she washed her face and looked at her reflection in the mirror and remembered something her father had told her once.

' _If you want to know what your mother looked like, you should just look in the mirror._ '

All those years she had followed his advice but it was just now that she realized that looking in the mirror wasn't enough for her. She needed to see what her mother really looked like. She wished she had a photo of her parents because she barely remembered even her father. New portion of tears welled up in her eyes but she fought them back and splashed water on her face. She then wiped her face carefully and throwing the used napkin into the recycle bin she walked out of the bathroom.

Molly didn't feel like going back to class so she left the school and went to Dennis' workplace instead because she needed to talk to someone and he was the only one who could answer her questions. He was still working at Teshima and every time she went there a lot of memories were brought to the surface. She quickly got to Dennis' department's floor and headed straight at the direction of his office. His secretary Suzanne Dunne, who was the only other mother figure in Molly's life beside her aunt, wasn't at her desk so the girl assumed she was inside the office talking to Dennis. The thought lifted her mood up a bit and made her smile because she hadn't seen the bubbly brunette in a while and she loved spending time with her.

However when she took a peek inside through the window her heart fell.

Suzanne was leaning back against Dennis' desk talking animatedly with Dennis whose hands were on both her sides and he was leaning close (way too close for Molly's liking). His face was inches away from Suzanne's and his lips were pulled in a playful smile.

Molly's smile vanished and tears of pain glimmered in her eyes but she refused to let them fall. Taking a deep breath she took a moment to compose herself before knocking on the door and walking inside.

"Molly?!" Dennis' eyes shot wide and he quickly walked over to her. "What are you doing here?"

She watched his expression change quickly from surprise to concern.

"I came here because I needed to talk to you about something." The young girl said, closing the door behind herself.

When Suzanne moved to walk out of the office she quickly stopped her.

"I need to talk to _both_ of you."

The other woman nodded and the three of them sat down. Taking a deep breath Molly told them about what happened at her school and explained the reason why she had come to Teshima.

"I just...I need to know more about my parents." She concluded. "I don't know how or why my mother died. Hell I don't even have her picture. If you could help me it would mean a lot."

"Sweetheart, I did a really big research on your family back then and I came up with nothing. You know that." Suzanne said softly.

"I know. But that was ten years ago and today the technology is really advanced and I just thought if you do another research you might..I don't know..come up with something." The young girl said pleadingly.

"Ok, I'll see what I can do." Suzanne said, causing Molly to smile.

There was another reason why Molly wanted Suzanne to do the research. Initially she was planning to ask Dennis to do it, but after what she had witnessed she decided that if she asked Suzanne that would keep the brunette occupied for some time and she wouldn't have enough time to hang around Dennis and flirt with him.

"Thank you so much."

"Anything for you, sweetie." Suzanne smiled back and walked out of the office.

Dennis circled his desk and sat down in the chair next to Molly.

"Look I know it was painful to listen your classmates talk about their parents but you shouldn't run away from school like that."

He gently took her hand in his, squeezing her fingers lightly. She looked at him and new portion of tears filled her eyes at the memory.

"It was horrible. I felt like an outsider all over again because they had something I knew I'd never have."

Booker's eyes softened and he pulled her in for a hug. She leaned her head against his shoulder and closed her eyes falling deep into his embrace.

"I know it's not Ms Cofax's fault because everytime there's a new teacher we have to introduce ourselves over and over again, but it really hurts." Molly said, not acknowledging the way Dennis' body tensed ever so slightly when she mentioned her teacher's name.

"Ms Cofax?" He asked, still holding her in his arms and he felt her nod.

"Yeah, Ms Donna Cofax. From what I got of our first class with her she's really nice."

"That's good." Dennis said, deep in his thoughts.

It seems after all this time Donna was back in town and judging by her last name she was either divorced or had never married Jeff. Unless she decided to keep her maiden name that is. The dark-haired detective suddenly felt the urge to see her again. After all she was his first true love and even after all those years she still owned a piece of his heart. That's when he took the decision to talk to her. Sure a lot of things had happened for the last ten years but he needed to see her and to find out if he still held a piece of her heart as well.

Blissfully unaware of the storm going through Booker's mind, Molly enjoyed being held by him, because he had never hugged her for so long.

But she was soon to find out that the reason for the long hug would become one of her biggest nightmares.

And that it would be only the beginning of the storm that was about to hit them, shaking their lives and scattering their world into pieces.


End file.
